Rev. Sandra Cox

If you ask Wikipedia, summer begins on June 20, the date the sun reaches its northernmost point of the equator. But for me, Memorial Day has always been the official beginning of summer. It’s the first big weekend for grilling out and picnics and making your own ice cream. You might use red, white, and blue decorations and you might put a flag outside on your house.

And you can officially wear white shoes. But only until Labor Day. (Some traditions die hard).

Memorial Day, of course, is intended as a time for us to stop and remember and pay our respects to those men and women who gave their lives while serving in our armed forces. Originating as Decoration Day just after the Civil War, the intent was to decorate with flowers the graves of those who died in the Civil War. In the 20th century remembrances began to extend to honor all Americans who had died serving their nation.

So I hope this weekend will afford you the opportunity to grill out, make ice cream, and pay your respects to those who have committed their lives to serving our country. And, I hope you will make worship on Sunday morning part of your summer kick off! We’ll have special music at both the 8:15 and 11:00 services and the Praise Band will cover a Beatles tune at 9:30.

We’ll sing. We’ll pray. We’ll hear words from scripture and think about what they mean for our lives right now. We’ll drink coffee, catch up with each other, meet some folks we hadn’t met before.

In other words, we will be the church. The church for all seasons.

~ Pastor Sandra Cox